Sponsored By
ROCK
HARDWARE
Chockstone Photography
Australian Landscape Prints |
Chockstone Forum - General Discussion
General Climbing Discussion
| Author |
|
|||||
7:35:39 PM |
So, the thought occurs to me - as it does to many - that maybe life isn't about the 9-5 grind with rushed weekends and a few measly weeks of leave a year. Especially if your job is just a job and its not what you are passionate about. But then methinks, if you going and become an outdoors guide, or a dirtbag or just work 4 days a week or 6 months of the year does it make you happy? Does it stop you being able to support a family. Is it a choice that can be worked for a lifetime or just a few years? Does it make you jaded toting whooping backpackers around the same 3 canyons or up the same 3 climbs? Any success stories? Doesnt have to be a move to being an outdoors guide, just a change to something more lifestyle orientated. Any failures? I have a lot of inertia keeping me where I am so its hard to let go. Perhaps some inspiring anecdotes could help. |
|||||
8:10:46 PM |
The ole catch 22... Coming from both sides of things (semi-retired guide going into full weeks of work) it sucks both ways... Working 9-5 is shit, but as you imply there's room to plan and knowledge of whether your'll be eating well the following week, or cracking out the noodles and dead horse... Guiding is great fun, and deffinately a lifestyle choice, but family ain't gunna happen easily... Best option, move somewhere close to climbing, get a job share with some other sucker and work a rotating roster of 4 days one week and 3 days the next... Could move to Horsham, be a Garbo on a swing shift, sell some ice on the side and be sitting or pretty?... No success story here by the way... |
|||||
8:24:24 PM |
Get a job in mining …. Paid to pretend to work for two weeks Then get paid to dirt bag for the following two weeks Rent = $0 Income = $175,000/year Days climbing a year = 150-200 (depends if you take annual leave) Save your money, pay off a few houses. Buy some shares. EASY. |
|||||
8:41:39 PM |
Errrr. I already work in mining - just not a rotating roster. I have chosen to live within 3 hours drive of the mountains so I can do stuff on weekends, but the pits within drive of civilisation or decent climbing do not work the time on time off roster. Also, destroying the planet for a living isn't particularly fulfilling and hard to be passionate about. | |||||
9:33:04 PM |
Ohh easy. Become a artist. |
|||||
9:40:30 PM |
Interesting concept skegly. | |||||
10:30:20 PM |
Meg and I used to leave Melbourne every weekend for climbing. One weekend we were returning and caught our first glimpse of Melbourne near Myrniong and said "Do we really want to keep doing this?" and decided we had to move. Being good corporate types we started to work out a five-year plan to get out of Melbourne. I saw the job in Horsham 3 weeks later. We moved and have been here 26 years on May 15. We got lucky with the job timing but, if we hadn't already made the decision we might not have been looking to take the opportunity. |
|||||
8:38:12 AM |
I left Melbourne in 2011. Bought (most of) a new house in Horsham in 2012 using the deposit I'd set aside for a house in Melbourne. My wife gets paid more here than she would in Melbourne (medical) so between that and the cheaper living, the drop in my income has been unnoticeable to our lifestyle. In terms of happiness and fulfillment, we're miles in front. Pushing kids off cliffs is far less stressful than my old job, shops etc are within 2km of the house and a bad afternoon getting home from work in traffic for the wife means it took 7 minutes instead of 4. |
|||||
9:41:54 AM |
The difference between living at/near Arapiles (as one example) is that you're not on a climbing holiday, you're living. So that means things like, generating an income, having a relationship(s), indulging the full range of your interests, etc, are going to still be a part of your life. When I go on a climbing holiday somewhere, I usually climb 4 days on 1 day off. I don't climb like that living near Araps. I work 3 days a week for starters. I have other interests, which I share with my partner, and we like to do them together. Climbing is one of those interests. The real benefit of close access to a crag is being able to work climbing into your daily routine. Day light saving is a real bonus in summer, as it means you can do a days work, then head out to Araps for a few hours late in the day. Its like going to the gym after work, and considering that I wouldn't go to Araps before 3pm during summer anyway, there's no great loss. Cheap housing costs are a big benefit as well. |
|||||
11:29:22 AM |
Just to put it in perspective, it took me 1 hr 8 minutes to commute from Kew to the city today. |
|||||
11:47:57 AM |
Move to Sydney. Its surrounded by rock and wilderness. Its easy to have a job and climb. Save up your holidays and go to Araps then. | |||||
12:00:21 PM |
There is quite a range of commitment that you can make to climbing. Whilst I continue to aspire to experience a dirt bag lifestyle, it would likely only be short lived. It must be said that I very much enjoy my city living. My move was changing my job from 60 hours of consulting a week to a 38 hour week with local government and then taking a pay cut to have 8 weeks leave a year. This was all done with climbing in mind. The result is the salary and the leave to get quite a few overseas and interstate climbing trips in the bag each year plus a heap of long weekends. Quite happy with the balance at this time. |
|||||
12:18:38 PM |
On 24/03/2015 gfdonc wrote: >Just to put it in perspective, it took me 1 hr 8 minutes to commute from >Kew to the city today. > You need a new bike? |
|||||
12:24:57 PM |
On 23/03/2015 hamish_b wrote: >So, the thought occurs to me - as it does to many - that maybe life isn't >about the 9-5 grind with rushed weekends and a few measly weeks of leave >a year. Especially if your job is just a job and its not what you are >passionate about. But then methinks, if you going and become an outdoors >guide, or a dirtbag or just work 4 days a week or 6 months of the year >does it make you happy? I din't work for more than 8hrs a week for 10 years. I made a living as a juggler and I can tell you that I was well over it after the first year. 9-5....whatever, it's the repetition that crushes the soul. >Does it stop you being able to support a family? Sort of. Seasonal work is best done alone. > Is it a choice that can be worked for a lifetime or just a few years? How long is a piece of string? > Does it make you jaded toting whooping backpackers around the same 3 canyons >or up the same 3 climbs? I certainly became jaded about my chosen trade. Juggling was reduced to throwing things in the air and catching them. Not much else to it really. > >Any success stories? Doesnt have to be a move to being an outdoors guide, >just a change to something more lifestyle orientated. Any failures? Was borderline poverty case at times. Had way too much money at others. >I have a lot of inertia keeping me where I am so its hard to let go. Perhaps >some inspiring anecdotes could help. > Dreams and passion change over time. Things come and go. |
|||||
5:06:29 PM |
On 24/03/2015 shortman wrote: >Had way too much money at others....  |
|||||
6:43:56 PM |
Emergency services; sure the shift work can suck at times though there's time for family fun and the work is always varied... Best choice I ever made. | |||||
7:06:39 PM |
On 24/03/2015 Imaclawfan wrote: >On 24/03/2015 shortman wrote: >>Had way too much money at others.... > > > > > Fark Claw, u a grammah pedent? Shoulda read other times. |
|||||
8:54:52 PM |
Ya missed me point , dude ... Whats wrong with having way too much money ??? please explain ... |
|||||
10:46:43 PM |
On 24/03/2015 Imaclawfan wrote: >Ya missed me point , dude ... Not really. > >Whats wrong with having way too much money ??? > > > >please explain ... > > Ask Ben Cousins. |
|||||
10:54:44 PM |
>Not really Yeah really... |
| There are 26 messages in this topic. |
Home | Guide | Gallery | Tech Tips | Articles | Reviews | Dictionary | Forum | Links | About | Search
Chockstone Photography | Landscape Photography Australia | Australian Landscape Photography | Landscape Photos Australia
Please read the full disclaimer before using any information contained on these pages.
Australian Panoramic |
Australian Coast |
Australian Mountains |
Australian Countryside |
Australian Waterfalls |
Australian Lakes |
Australian Cities |
Australian Macro |
Australian Wildlife
Landscape Photo |
Landscape Photography |
Landscape Photography Australia |
Fine Art Photography |
Wilderness Photography |
Nature Photo |
Australian Landscape Photo |
Stock Photography Australia |
Landscape Photos |
Panoramic Photos |
Panoramic Photography Australia |
Australian Landscape Photography |
High Country Mountain Huts |
Mothers Day Gifts |
Gifts for Mothers Day |
Mothers Day Gift Ideas |
Ideas for Mothers Day |
Wedding Gift Ideas |
Christmas Gift Ideas |
Fathers Day Gifts |
Gifts for Fathers Day |
Fathers Day Gift Ideas |
Ideas for Fathers Day |
Landscape Prints |
Landscape Poster |
Limited Edition Prints |
Panoramic Photo |
Buy Posters |
Poster Prints